Easter in autumn . . . can you imagine? Just like Christmas in summer, we have decided that those would be hard pills to swallow living in the Southern Hemisphere. I found myself thinking about all the different ways that Easter was being celebrated elsewhere – brunch with friends and relatives, Holy Week (Semana Santa) processions in Spain, Hawaiian vacations, “The Life of Christ” drama at Oak Park, a Polish Catholic service inside a crowded onion-domed church in Sczeczin, a Passover meal, or a Cathedral mass in Berlin. But we had a glorious weekend camping on the beach with three other families. They all know each other from their English-speaking church in Santiago and what an international crowd we had. One family from Australia, one from Canada (although the dad is Chilean) and the Reifenbergs from the States. I have always had an ill-founded aversion to English-speaking people when I’m attempting to immerse myself in a Latin culture, but the truth is we are often extremely blessed by these travelers. Yesterday, we were atop a hill that houses a museum, café, lookout, 
etc. in Santiago. A gentleman passing us saw Chase and said “That one’s got some Irish in him!” We then spoke to him for a few minutes and left fuller for it. Mary was slightly confused, as he seemed kind, but she wondered why he commented on Charlie being such a “fet man”. Charlie isn’t fat at all, but she understood when we realized the Irishman meant he was a very FIT man.Camping held all the right elements – beautiful weather, shower facilities, and conversational walks, hikes and campfires. Steve led a stretching/yoga session for the whole gang one morning on the beach. Wonderful to work out the lumpy-ground-sleep while lookin
g out at the ocean. And we played a few innings of whiffle baseball, which gave the Australian girls a proper sports education! These are our last days in Santiago as we head to Peru on Friday morning. We’ve had a great stay and even enjoyed the frequent bus & metro transportation. It’s empowering to figure out a city’s system and the kids are excellent at it. The crowds are often part of the experience, but even that has taught us that if you’re going to have company you must be willing to scoot over and accommodate other people (and the baggage they bring). Good life lesson, don’t you think? The bus drivers are unique in their talent to speed up quickly and screech to a halt at the next stop. This makes for a very entertaining workout, clinging to a pole or swinging from a ceiling strap. Yesterday, we came to our stop on a crowded bus and the kids were closer to the back door, so they hopped off. But Charlie and I got stuck behind people in the aisle and reached the steps slightly late. I would give anything to have seen it from the outside. Jane said she turned around and saw Charlie’s leg sticking out of the doors as the bus began to pull away. Lots of shouting and lurching and we calmly disembarked.
g out at the ocean. And we played a few innings of whiffle baseball, which gave the Australian girls a proper sports education! These are our last days in Santiago as we head to Peru on Friday morning. We’ve had a great stay and even enjoyed the frequent bus & metro transportation. It’s empowering to figure out a city’s system and the kids are excellent at it. The crowds are often part of the experience, but even that has taught us that if you’re going to have company you must be willing to scoot over and accommodate other people (and the baggage they bring). Good life lesson, don’t you think? The bus drivers are unique in their talent to speed up quickly and screech to a halt at the next stop. This makes for a very entertaining workout, clinging to a pole or swinging from a ceiling strap. Yesterday, we came to our stop on a crowded bus and the kids were closer to the back door, so they hopped off. But Charlie and I got stuck behind people in the aisle and reached the steps slightly late. I would give anything to have seen it from the outside. Jane said she turned around and saw Charlie’s leg sticking out of the doors as the bus began to pull away. Lots of shouting and lurching and we calmly disembarked. As the Chinese proverb says “Blessed are they that laugh at themselves for they shall never cease to be entertained.”
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